Beachfront home left teetering on Atlantic’s edge relocated for now
By
Zachary Rosenthal, AccuWeather staff writer
Published Feb 4, 2022 11:53 AM EST
|
Updated Feb 4, 2022 11:53 AM EST
The major winter storm that swept through New England caused significant erosion along the coast. Storm chaser Reed Timmer was in Truro, Massachusetts, where a house is at risk of falling on Jan. 30.
A beachfront house in Truro, Massachusetts, that was quite literally on the edge of collapse after being pounded by the wrath of last week’s bomb cyclone has been safely relocated further inland on Cape Cod, The Boston Globe reported.
The house, which had overlooked the Atlantic Ocean since 1850, was formerly owned by the U.S. Coast Guard. Years of erosion have threatened the now privately-owned home; Cape Cod faces an average natural erosion rate on the Atlantic Ocean side of 3.8 feet a year, according to NausetLight.org.
Crews managed to save the house from plummeting into the ocean during a rescue mission that went from Wednesday night into Thursday, lifting it and moving it farther inland, near where it is expected to be relocated permanently.
“We anticipate it will take approximately a month or two before the home can find a permanent final resting place,” Town Manager Darrin Tangeman said in an e-mail to The Boston Globe. “The good news is that the house is no longer in danger of being destroyed by the rapid beach erosion that has occurred over the last 30 days.”
Large storms can dramatically speed up the erosion process. The embattled house lost about 20 feet of dune during a Jan. 17 storm, exposing three pilings under the house. With officials fearing that the expected heavy winds and large waves from the blizzard would send the house into the water, a crew worked to reinforce the home ahead of the potentially record-setting storm, The Cape Cod Times reported.
Up and down Cape Cod, hurricane-force wind gusts were reported as well as large waves and heavy snowfall. Extreme Meteorologist Reed Timmer reported from Truro during the storm, documenting erosion along the shoreline at the height of the nor’easter.
Hurricane-force wind gusts were recorded across much of southeastern New England, and in one town located on the northern tip of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, a wind gust of 99 mph was confirmed. Although the home survived, it was hardly out of danger. The storm exposed three more pilings, leaving the house teetering on the edge of the ocean.
Now, though, the house has been given a new lease on life. Still, some on Twitter were skeptical that the house has much time left.
"That will buy them [approximately]... one year," tweeted Eric Fisher, the chief meteorologist at CBS Boston.
While one year might be an exaggeration, the natural process of coastal erosion along with sea level rise is expected to make life challenging on the Cape in the future, with it being possible that the whole landmass could be gone in 6,000 years, according to coastal geologist Robert Oldale of the U.S. Geological Survey.
"Storm and wave erosion along the shore of Cape Cod has been going on for thousands of years and will likely continue for thousands of years more. It is a natural process that allows the Cape to adjust to rising sea levels," Oldale said. "If we build on the shore, we must accept the fact that sooner or later, coastal erosion will take the property away."
The latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform.
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News / Weather News
Beachfront home left teetering on Atlantic’s edge relocated for now
By Zachary Rosenthal, AccuWeather staff writer
Published Feb 4, 2022 11:53 AM EST | Updated Feb 4, 2022 11:53 AM EST
The major winter storm that swept through New England caused significant erosion along the coast. Storm chaser Reed Timmer was in Truro, Massachusetts, where a house is at risk of falling on Jan. 30.
A beachfront house in Truro, Massachusetts, that was quite literally on the edge of collapse after being pounded by the wrath of last week’s bomb cyclone has been safely relocated further inland on Cape Cod, The Boston Globe reported.
The house, which had overlooked the Atlantic Ocean since 1850, was formerly owned by the U.S. Coast Guard. Years of erosion have threatened the now privately-owned home; Cape Cod faces an average natural erosion rate on the Atlantic Ocean side of 3.8 feet a year, according to NausetLight.org.
Crews managed to save the house from plummeting into the ocean during a rescue mission that went from Wednesday night into Thursday, lifting it and moving it farther inland, near where it is expected to be relocated permanently.
“We anticipate it will take approximately a month or two before the home can find a permanent final resting place,” Town Manager Darrin Tangeman said in an e-mail to The Boston Globe. “The good news is that the house is no longer in danger of being destroyed by the rapid beach erosion that has occurred over the last 30 days.”
Large storms can dramatically speed up the erosion process. The embattled house lost about 20 feet of dune during a Jan. 17 storm, exposing three pilings under the house. With officials fearing that the expected heavy winds and large waves from the blizzard would send the house into the water, a crew worked to reinforce the home ahead of the potentially record-setting storm, The Cape Cod Times reported.
Up and down Cape Cod, hurricane-force wind gusts were reported as well as large waves and heavy snowfall. Extreme Meteorologist Reed Timmer reported from Truro during the storm, documenting erosion along the shoreline at the height of the nor’easter.
Hurricane-force wind gusts were recorded across much of southeastern New England, and in one town located on the northern tip of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, a wind gust of 99 mph was confirmed. Although the home survived, it was hardly out of danger. The storm exposed three more pilings, leaving the house teetering on the edge of the ocean.
Now, though, the house has been given a new lease on life. Still, some on Twitter were skeptical that the house has much time left.
"That will buy them [approximately]... one year," tweeted Eric Fisher, the chief meteorologist at CBS Boston.
While one year might be an exaggeration, the natural process of coastal erosion along with sea level rise is expected to make life challenging on the Cape in the future, with it being possible that the whole landmass could be gone in 6,000 years, according to coastal geologist Robert Oldale of the U.S. Geological Survey.
"Storm and wave erosion along the shore of Cape Cod has been going on for thousands of years and will likely continue for thousands of years more. It is a natural process that allows the Cape to adjust to rising sea levels," Oldale said. "If we build on the shore, we must accept the fact that sooner or later, coastal erosion will take the property away."
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The latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform.
Report a Typo